What's the Plan, Man?

I'm no stranger to all things health related, weight loss related, exercise related, diet related, and so on and so forth.  Just the fact that I used to be a trainer give me somewhat of a knowledge base.  I've been a bit of a yo-yo dieter; low carb, low fat, low calorie, South Beach, Adkins, Zone, diet pills, well, you get the idea.  I've always gained back what I lost, and it's certainly no mystery why!  I'm kind of extreme when it comes to this type of thing.  I'm either eating everything in sight in portion sizes fit for a giant, along with being completely sedentary, or I'm barely eating and over-exercising.  As Dr. Phil would say "And how's that workin' for ya?".  Well, it's not, and never has (b-t-dubs I think Dr. Phil is so douchey, so is saying b-t-dubs, but I can't help it). 

So this time I have decided to pay a lot of attention to my attitude towards things; change my misconceptions, and do this in a healthy way so it can be maintained once I get to my goal.  I've fallen into a terrible pattern of either losing or gaining, but never maintaining, which is not only unhealthy, but takes a toll on one's mentality.

Diet wise - My plan (for now) is to count calories.  This is something I have to do in order to hold myself accountable, and while I've gotten extreme with it in the past, it has worked for me, and as long as I do not fall below where I need to be I think it will be useful, at least in the short term.

Exercise wise - Strength training 2 to 3 times a week, having my husband, Jason, train me until I am able to push myself alone.  Running 2 to 3 times a week, for 20 minutes to start with.

Weight loss wise - Well, I'm a scale addict, which for me works too.  When I stop weighing is when I start gaining, it's like if I don't see the number it isn't happening.  I hope to lose 2 to 3 pounds a week for a while, then 1 to 2.  I know the closer I get to my goal the slower it will come off.  This is where I usually lose it mentally.  I figure if 2 to 3 lbs is good, 3 to 4 is better, and so on.  It doesn't work that way, and logically I know that.  I'd like to be at my goal weight by around Halloween.

The main reason I will be blogging this journey is to keep me in check.  I typically hide these issues from everyone except perhaps a couple people, and when it gets bad I do tend to hide it from everyone, which is bad.  So here it all is.